Gutz
by Flipping FlapJacks
Summary: Being a teenager on Destiny Islands and surviving the school system only requires one thing: GUTZ.
1. Chasing Smoke

**The guts the glory, **

**to rise to the top means a **

**new chance, a new story  
**

* * *

Roxas nodded his head to the music playing through his earphones, immersed by the music rather than his company.

"Hey look out Island Kid!" A boy with complete unruly cocoa colored hair yelled picking up his surfboard, taking a minor pause from his daily petty arguments with another boy with silky silver voluminous hair, as a girl with wine red hair along side them yelped in surprise, holding down her sky blue plaid skirt.

"What?" Was all Roxas could spit out before being hit a gust of what seemed to be the most perfect, irresistible, concoction of vanilla and cinnamon running past him, and knocking off his glasses, leaving it clattering on the ground.

"Sorry about that!" Roxas heard as squinted back at the fleeting figure, a cloud of distant colors, though the skirt looked flipped up, "A missed opportunity," he half grunted half giggled while bending down, patting the cement for his glasses.

"Roxas! You ought to take better care of yourself! You could've seriously gotten hurt," A girl knelt down beside him, her brunette tresses swaying as she took his hand and plopped the familiar plastic frame of his glasses, grasping onto her khaki skirt all the while.

"Omlette you don't need to treat him like that," Hayner spoke, sliding a mischievous stare with his toffee eyes towards Olette, "You gotta let our wittle baby boy grow up, he's finally surviving on his own,"

"Hayner's got a point Omlet- I mean Olette,"

"Really Pence, you're taking _Hayner's_ side?" Olette glared at Pence, piercing his soft earthen eyes with her hazel stare.

"Uhh, no ma'am. I'm 100% not taking sides. Cause there aren't any sides right? Right guys?" Pence nervously chuckled dodging Olette's sudden barrage of intense eye contact, twisting his neck around as Olette tangoed along trying to put herself in front of Pence

"Anyways, well thanks for helping me find my glasses Olette. And I am more than capable of being on my own thank you very much Hayner," Roxas anxiously peeked back down the path to see if he could still see the bike, skirts flipped up girl. But what was he expecting... she was on a bike.

Roxas still looked down the lane, Cherry Blossom Lane as infamously known. Another hot spot of Destiny Islands, Cherry Blossom Lane was lined with Cherry Blossom trees left and right, a gift from the president of the island, which added beautiful scenery on the walk towards one out of the only three prodigious high schools on the whole island.

Since they are only three high schools on Destiny Islands, not only is each school excessively large with the gargantuan amounts of funding they receive per year, but they are 'Specialty Skill Schools' aka SSS. The schools branch off onto three different subjects in which students are free to explore, to heighten, and to hone to their own personal strengths, in which they all understand varies in multitude of degrees.

First, fenced in with the so called 'Lord's Gates' made out of solid gold, and what's even better, inside a colossal marble fountain, where a whole walk around the fountain would be two miles, the notorious 'Fountain of Youth' all in King Mickey's High School. It's pride is held in its sporting athletes, and their programs. They house every sport under the sky, basketball football soccer blitzball golf judo struggles, you name it. Their tournaments appearing on public tv, and achieving one of the most highest ratings in all of history.

Second, with it's Cherry Blossom Lane, Islands High, the school and home of art any art, and all art. Whether it's striking a chord on a piano, dishing out buckets of paint on a canvas, or cooking a mean steak Islands High is the school to go to. The school provides precious opportunities to the students, being that every graduate has been offered a job in their expertise, maybe a five star restaurant, or recitals at immeasurable concert halls. Not only that, but the students themselves perform private events, increasing the revenue of the high school by almost 400% in the past two years, which is all coordinated by the students themselves. It is also rumored that hanging on one of its walls the real Mona Lisa lies in peace. The confirmation of its existence awaits.

Last, but not least Ansem High School. The school for the academically honored, where the greatest engineers, scientists, surgeons, and capitalists have been born unto. Ansem High School boasts the largest library in the world, the books in there have been dug up from relics, pried from a dead mans cold hands, and where new up and coming authors just knows to drop off a batch of their published works here if they even want a chance to be recognized. The knowledge offered at Ansem High School is far from replicable as not only do they have the books but the brains as well, their teachers all PHD certified, and more than equipped to answer any question in their field.

All three of these schools have been recognized on a world wide panel, but only admits within it's vicinity, meaning only Destiny Island citizens can attend these schools.

The choice bestowed on the youth of the island is powerful, with this kind of freedom, it is that much easier to bestow your own doom upon you. It is not unheard of unhappy students, who only realize after attending their school of choice the mistake they have made in their own calculations, or even when they are easily mislead at the time of their decision.

"Dude Roxas, did you know who just helped you?"

"A Mickey Student, Pence,"

"Actually not just any Mickey student Roxas, how could you not know who he is? There hair alone is famous enough to recognize them!"

"Cause he lives underneath a rock, he probably didn't even know who else was with him," Hayner chimed in.

"Wait who else was with him?" Roxas poked at.

"Ok, well Sora Sirachi Sauce who is number one in-,"

"Was he on a bike?"

"What? Roxas I don't know who was on the bike, but Kairi Osho was there-"

"Uh huh, whatever, I think I left something back at school, and I know it's one of the days we get to meet and all but it's really important, so I gotta jet!"

"Wait where are you going Roxas?! Did you even notice that Riku Rice Krispies was also ther-" Pence stuttered, watching Roxas run off right back where he came from.

The three stood in there dumbfounded. Hayner glancing back at Pence who started nervously fidgeting with his camera, while Olette's usually bright green eyes were cast down on the ground, clutching onto her school brief case tightly.

"...C'mon Olette, Pence. Let's head home, we'll just have to wait for him to come around another time..."

* * *

Roxas sprinted through Islands High gates, heading towards the bike shed only to find it abandoned. Roxas jerked his head around like a lost dog, seeing the sky turn a pretty orange pink, like a Popsicle stacked with two flavors, a cool pink lemonade cascading with a sharp tangy orange, as he continued to sprint throughout the ghostown of a campus.

_A bike should be hard to miss right?_ he reasoned with himself, still stumbling through the empty hallways, clambering up the concrete stairs, checking every nook and cranny of the school. Finally he let out a sigh of defeat, and logically analyzed what he had done.

Waste his own time. And waste Hayner's Pence's and Olette's.

And he kicked in some cardio which wasn't all that bad, but reflecting upon what he had done, Roxas just shook his head in shame. He silently sauntered back out the gates, barely having the strength to lift his arm to salute. After running back and forth while basically trying to hunt down a far fetched fairy tale, like finding that the kraken doesn't really exist after sailing all seven seas, or that a city of gold was never ever mounted in the first place after dedicating your life in search of it.

The feelings swirling around in his stomach wouldn't stop though, the premonition of something lost wouldn't leave him.

"Roxas?! What are you still doing here? I thought you were off with some of your old pals!" Roxas flinched a bit; too soon, as Yuffie walked up from behind in the normal, in a black blazer the school's emblem stitched on with a white dress shirt underneath pink and white striped tie, matching with the pink and white plaid skirt.

"Ah, I just... forgot something. Yeah I should be with them right now though agh..."

"But I thought you haven't seen them for months, you know, since they go to Ansem and all that, but whatever," Yuffie nervously laughed realizing after witnessing Roxas cringe she was just adding an extra punch to the bruise, "Well do you need any help finding whatever is lost?"

"Actually, have you seen any bikes around here lately?"

"Yeah, I did! It's parked near that alley between the humanities building and the clock tower,"

"Thanks Yuffie, you're a real life saver!" Roxas' face came back to life again as he dashed back past the school gates.

"Your welcome! But next time you should put it in the bike shed! It'll be easier to find!"

* * *

Roxas again picked up his feet to go on another hunt to capture smoke, hopefully before it completely evaporated into thin air... It was a tall order to fill, for anyone.

His eyes finally caught the gleam of the squeaky clean bicycle handles, perched right where Yuffie referred him to...yet there it was perchered... by itself.

"Damnit," Roxas muttered to himself, running over to the bike, reluctantly taking extra steps to this strenuous investigation. Roxas about to cave into the temptation of ringing the bicycle bell froze when

"Excuse me, could you step away from the bicycle please?"

Roxas' heart swelled and fluttered, as his eyes widened, preparing himself to face the goddesse he chased after.

"Jesus Christ, seriously, it's you Namine?"

"What do you want Roxas?

* * *

**_done and done with a new update. much more settled with this than the previous draft, please review (:_**


	2. Sucks to Suck

Settled at the edge of the clock tower together, Namine and Roxas enjoy some afternoon snacks as the sun tucks itself behind the horizon.

"What are you doing here Namine?"

"Just wanted a change of scenery... how about you?" Pushing the conversation forward, as she pulled out what seemed to look like lunch box.

"Well you swung by without saying a hi to me, in fact you sent me kissing concrete, you and that bike. Then I look up, half blind without my glasses and I thought I saw some panty action," Roxas chuckled, "Sad to say I was mistaken,"

"I guess people never really do change, chasing down underwear, I don't know what I should have expected from you," Namine rolled her eyes, taking a bite out of her leftover fried rice.

"Don't treat me like some old perv, I was just over the top curious. And it's not like I had anything better to do," Roxas huffed out anxiously, rubbing the back of his neck, while grabbing Namine's bento box with his other hand.

"Excuses," Namine waved her hand, as if she swatting flies away, "How much do you think I _don't_ know about you after all the time we spent with each other?"

"Uh well not much Miss Sassy, I mean you were the one who totally 180'ed me and ditched me for that jock strap of a high school,"

"Well look at yourself, pretending that you just didn't abandon your childhood friends for some erotic image you've dreamt up inside of your head,"

"What how do you-"

"I'm not blind Roxas, and not that I'm a rocket scientist or anything but I don't know any other idiots who would wear cameo with their uniform,"

"Aghhh damnit Hayner," The boy muttered, "The boy just never learns,"

"Still shouldn't blame him though," Namine sighed, reaching back for her bento box.

"... Well how's high school for you then?" Roxas rotating subjects, eluding the travels into a sour topic.

"None of your business,"

"Oh come on, it's just school!"

"That's not what you were saying when you were practically sobbing for me to follow you here," A smirk grew on Namine's face as she silently picked at what was left of the eggs.

"Ok, first off, I was not crying. There was just like _a lot_ of wind, and I remember because we were like really close to the Twilight Town mills, and mills can really blow a mean wind soo totally not my fault," Roxas covering his own ass, picked out the surviving piece of egg left in the pink box with his chopsticks, tossing it up into the air and capturing it with his hungry mouth, "Second, Islands isn't bad, I still don't even understand what you have against it,"

"How many times do I have to go over this with you, I just... I just need to focus on my boxing," Namine bit her lip, but in a snap though tucking her bento back into her navy school tote, "I think now would be a good time for me to get going now Roxas," She held herself up, brushing off whatever dust was on her sky blue plaid skirt, while buttoning her blazer together.

"Well golly this doesn't this bring back some old memories... of you ditching me all over again," Roxas looked up at Namine, "Ass," teasingly sticking out his tongue at her as she cast her eyes to shamelessly soak in the view as she averted his playful words, masking the inevitable toxic message that taunted her to no end.

"Good-Bye Roxas," Namine murmured ever so quietly, almost like a timid mouse letting out a pipsqueak. Roxas faced back at her, their eyes meeting for what seemed like the hundredth but felt like their last, her ghostly blue eyes drawing his own sharp azure eyes all over again, before Namine turned away and ever so silently began her descent down the clock tower stairs alone.

Roxas still sat with his legs dangling over the clock tower, watching from above as Namine biked off, further and further away from Roxas.

Stumbling to pick himself up, a foreign object caught his eye.

"Guess people never really do change then, Namine," Roxas muttered as picked up a navy school bag, a pained sad grin attached to his face. Standing atop of the tower, clutching the bag tightly,feeling his blood coarse wildly through his veins, the wind gently kissing his skin, leafing through his honey blonde hair, hanging his head back and holding the taboo tears back.

"...Damn wind,"

* * *

"Ventus, I'm home!" Roxas stood at the apartment door way, slipping his shoes off, and setting down the two school bags he carried with him. Down the stairs came rushing Roxas' doppelganger, their blonde arrogant hair curling at the exact same angle, their blundering the exact same blue, and they even had matching scars back of their necks. The one physical thing to pick the twins apart from each other would be Ventus' thick glasses.

"... Don't tell me you brought twice the amount of homework for me," Ventus arched his eyebrows, suspiciously eyeing the bag lying next to his.

"Don't worry about it, some kid just left it at school. Don't you ever take off those khakis? They look real uncomfortable,"

"Won't stop me from studying though,"

"Hah, spoken like a true Ansem student," Roxas chuckled, "Well I'm going to get started on dinner and you can,"

"Start your homework, yeah like always. Today I'm in the mood for some Chinese," Ventus picketed Roxas' school bag as he tugged down his silver tie.

"A fair trade it is then," Roxas pulled up his sleeves heading towards their kitchen as his older brother wemt running up right back where he came from.

Pulling out the old familiar bamboo cutting board, a worn out stir pan, and some butter, Roxas began to prep a meal for his family. During his daily check up he opened up the rice cooker, peering down an iron black pot barely spotted with grains of white rice.

Finding himself slipping back on his shoes which were still warm from the walk back home in front of his door steps he slipped his hands in his pant pockets, feeling for money, "Ventus, sorry but I have to head out for a little bit to pick up some rice for dinner," His hands fell on a couple of 20 munny bills.

"Sucks to suck,"

* * *

"Ah, we ran out of eggs Riku,"

"Just cause you said my name doesn't mean I'm going to go get it," Riku's eyes flickered at him for a moment before it returned back to concentrating on _Sports Illustrated._

"Well I don't want to get it, it's almost ten o clock. It's so dark outside!" Sora started.

"Don't be such a baby,"

"I'm not being a baby Riku, I'm just taking precautions, I've got to keep my body in tip top shape, and it's not just for my surfing" Sora cheekily grinned as he flexed his biceps as if he was an overstuffed muscle model, posing through the kitchen window for Riku who was still silently reading.

"If you want protection then go get Kairi," Sora's eyes perked up at the idea, as he dashed out the front door without another word. Not only would he be secure in the boxing queen's presence, but he would be able to spend more time with her! It was the perfect way to kill two birds with one stone.

In no time for a snail's pace, Sora skipped over the elevator and hopped up the stairs and skipped over to room 5-S where he stood there catching his breath, hand combing desperately at his hair.

Taking one final deep breath, he knocked on the door.

"Sora? What are you doing here?"

"Well I was wondering if you wanted to get some eggs with me,"

"...It's kind of late out... but sure, as long as I get to take my sister, she came over really bummed out,"

"Oh yeah sure, that's definitely no problem Kairi!"

"Alright, hold on let me just go grab her," Kairi sheepishly smiled at him, as she slipped back behind the door. "Namine, Sora just came by and wanted to know if we wanted to go get eggs with him," The older of the two stated, grabbing her coat as she passed by the sullen blonde on the couch.

"Yeah I think some fresh air will do me good," she replied, knowing fully well though that Sora specifically came only to call out Kairi. But to say no to Kairi was asking to be put under a headlock.

"Great! Let's get going!"


End file.
